Nothing fancy here, just tried and true, old fashioned, family style recipes from my kitchen in Alaska.

Friday, October 30, 2009

BASIC FOCACCIA BREAD

Today, when hubby asked what we were having for lunch, I told him turkey panini's. He got one of those proud grins on his face, that told me he was getting ready to make a wisecrack; then he told me he didn't know turkeys HAD panini's. He can be delightfully goofy. Todays sandwiches were made with a no-frills basic focaccia bread. For those of you who are still getting familiar with yeast doughs, this would be an excellent recipe to try; it is a very easy one and the results are fantastic.

Turkey and Smoked Gouda Panini

2¾ cups all purpose flour1 teaspoon salt1 teaspoon white sugar1 tablespoon dry active yeast1 clove garlic minced½ teaspoon black pepper2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)1 cup warm milkMix the first six ingredients together in the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix in warm milk and one tablespoon of olive oil. Mix well and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic (it only takes a few minutes). Cover with plastic and let it sit in a warm place for an hour. Push all of the air out of the dough and place it on a greased baking sheet. Pat the dough into a ½" thick rectangle and brush with the remaining one tablespoon of olive oil. Cover the rectangle very loosely with plastic wrap and let it sit for 30 minutes (it will raise a little, but not a lot). After 30 minutes, make dents in the dough (with your fingertips) every few inches over the entire surface of the focaccia. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes or until lightly golden. Cool the focaccia completely before slicing it horizontally to make sandwiches.

NOTE: This focaccia is basically a blank slate; you can add anything you like to the dough. If you want an herb focaccia, add 1 teaspoon each of dried oregano, dried thyme and dried basil to the first stage of the dough. If you want a cheesy focaccia, top the dough with a cup of shredded mozzarella and 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan just before baking.NOTE: I've been using my GF Grilling Machine to make panini's by setting a large heavy can of something on the closed grill top (to weight the sandwich down). It works very well.

I love Focaccia too...when I read the title on my blog roll i was excited as I knew there would be a beautiful panini in the picture ( and I was NOT in the least bit dissapointed ). I would love to try this & top the focaccia with halved baby cherry tomatoes...would that work out okay ?.... It would be pretty though right ?....